Feeding attachment for crown-cork-making machines.



E. ALBERTI. FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR CROWN CORK MAKING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 81 1918.

Patented Dec. 61, 1918.

1,289,591 s SHEETS-SHEET l 37 l j n .31 35 \l 33 Th HI! 3 34 I 35 l: l O "43 pa MI I I O INVENTOR.

E. ALBERT].

FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR CROWN CORK MAKING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 3,1918- 1,289,591. Patented Dec. 31,1918.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 2. Z. I 4\ i o I 2/ 1 I 7 2o I m E. ALBERTI.

FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR CROWN CORK MAKING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 8, I918- Patented Dec. 31, 1918.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

INVENTOR.

E. ALBERTI.

FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR CROWN CORK MAKING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 8.1918- I Patented Dec. 31,

INVENTQR. 1

5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

w ATTO E. ALBERTI.

FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR CROWN CORK MAKING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 3, I9I8- 1,289,591 Patented Dec. 31, 1918.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

T @FFTQE.

EMILIO ALBERTI, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR T0 INTERNATIONAL CORK COMPANY, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

FEEDING ATTACHMENT FOR CROWN-CORK-MAKING MACHINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 31, 1918.

Application filed March 8, 1918. Serial No. 221,164.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EMILIO ALBERTI, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of New York, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Feeding Attachments for Crown- Cork-Making Machines, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to machines for manufacturing bottle-, can-, and like closures of the cap variety, including those termed crown corks. The invention pertains more particularly to means for feeding the sealing disks of cork or similar material of the closures to the assembling devices of the machine.

The main object of the invention is to provide a simple and eflicient attachment for cap making machines, which automatically delivers the sealing disks from a mass to the assembling machine without regard to the thickness, weight, and more or less curved shapes of the disks.

With these and other objects in view, which will more fully appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in the combination, arrangement, and construction of parts hereinafter described, pointed out in the appended claims and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it being understood that many changes may be made in the size and proportion of the several parts and details of construction within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

Two of the many possible embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:-

Figure 1 is a central vertical section taken through a feeding attachment constructed in accordance with the present invention; Fig. 2 is a section similar to Fig. 1, showing on a larger scale the top portion of the apparatus; Fig. 3 is a section taken on line 33 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4. is a section taken on line 4E4 of Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a section similar to the one shown in Fig. 4, with the elements in other positions; Figs. 6 to 8, inclusive, are perspective views, partly in section, of cooperating elements of the hopper bottom; Fig. 9 is a-section similar to the one shown in Fig. 4 of a modification of the invention; and Fig. 10 is a section taken on line 101O of Fig. 9.

Generally speaking, the device consists of a hopper having a bottom provided with a tubular outlet, in combination with a stationary tube leading from said outlet and provided with a mouth having a diameter larger than that of said outlet, means being provided for reciprocating said bottom and outlet.

Referring now first to Figs. 1 to 8, inclusive, of the drawings, the numeral 11 indicates a portion of the frame of a crown cork assembling machine, having upon its table portion 12 mounted an upwardly extending support 13, which carries a hopper 14, that is in' the case illustrated in the drawings of cylindrical shape, its lower portion 15 being conical to cause the disks therein to move toward its longitudinal center line. The bottom 16 of this hopper is made of a separate piece, and is adapted, as will appear hereinafter, to be reciprocated in relation to the hopper body. The bottom is slightly concave and provided,-preferably, in its center with a circular outlet 17, the diameter of which is slightly larger than that of an individual sealing disk. The bottom is provided with a downwardly projecting tubular extension 18, leading from the outlet 17 and serving as a means through which the disks are discharged from the hopper, thus constituting the outlet of the hopper. Upon diametrically opposite points of the bottom 16 there are formed upon the underface thereof two lugs 19, which carry each an anti-friction roller 20, seated in recesses 21, that are formed in extensions of a bearing frame 22 hereinafter to be described. The recesses 21 are, in the case illustrated in the drawings, disposed in a straight line, that extends through the longitudinal axis of the bearing frame 22. The tubular extension 18 projects through a horizontally disposed disk 23 that is fixedly attached to the hopper bottom 16 and is located immediately below the same. Upon the underface of this disk are formed two horizontally extending parallel guideways 24, at right angles to the connecting line between the recesses 21... In these guideways is reciprocably mounted a slide 25, from which extends downward a tube 26, the inner diameter of which is substantially larger than the outer diameter of the tu-.

bular outlet 18. The tubular outlet extends through the tube 26, and the latter is seated eccentrieally in a bushing 27, that is rotatably mounted in the bearing frame 22. A step bearing 28 is inserted between the slide 25 and a flange 29 upon the upper end of the bushing 27, for the well-known purpose. \Vithin the bearing frame 22 are mounted ball bearings 30, to reduce friction between the said bushing and bearing frame. The bushing may be rotated in any suitable manner from the main driving shaft of the assemblin machine. for instance there may be mount-e upon the bushing a pulley 31, over which runs a belt 32, actuated from a rotary shaft. 7

The tubular outlet 18 of the hopper bottom is in alinement with the flaring mouth 33 of a stationary, preferably, vertically extending tube 34, leading to the transporting means 35 of the machine, which conveys the sealing disks one after the other to the assembling mechanism. The tube 34; is held above the transporting mechanism by a standard 36, and is provided in its wall with longitudinal slots 37, permitting of the iiisertion of a pointed instrument for the purpose of properly arranging the disks there in, if by accident. some of the same travel therein edgewise.

In order to prevent the whole mass of sealing disks from resting upon the hopper bottom and from clogging the outlet thereof, there is held a substantial distance above the said bottom, within the hopper, an inverted substantially funnel-shaped member 38.

The hopper bottom may be provided with perforations 39, having each a diameter that is smaller than that of a sealing disk. As the hopper bottom is reciprocated or vibrated, broken disks and foreign matter are sifted out from the mass. The disk 23 above mentioned covers the bearing, and thus prevents foreign matter sifted out from the disk mass from entering the said bearing.

Around the outlet 17 of the hopper bottom there may be formed a cage-like structure, which may be either fixedly attached to the said bottom or it may be mounted upon some stationary part of the mechanism. In the case illustrated in the drawings, a cage of the latter type is shown, comprising a spindle 40, that extends preferably centrally through the funnel-shaped memher 38, and is provided upon its upper end with screw threads, meshing with those of a wing-nut 41, which abuts against the upper face of the funnel-shaped member. To the spindle is attached in any suitable manner a disk 42, disposed a substantial distance above the circular outlet 17. To this disk are fixedly secured downwardly extending pins 43, which are disposed around the outlet of the bottom, their lower ends reaching into perforations 39 in the said bottom. The position of the disk 42 and the pins 4: thereon may be adjusted in relation to the bottom by turning the wing-nut 41 in one or the other direction.

Near the outlet of the tube 34 is formed in the same a slot 45, in alinement with which is held upon the standard 36 a shiftable stop 46, adapted to be projected into the said tube so as to prevent disks therein from falling onto the transporting means 35. This mechanism is made use of if the assembling device gets out of order and it becomes necessary to stop the feeding of the disks thereto.

The operation of this device is as fol lows :A mass of sealing is placed indiscriminately into the hopper and rotation imparted to the bushing 27. Inasmuch as the tube 26 is seated eccentrically in said bushing and the slide 25 of said tube moves in the guideways 24 of the disk 23, and the lugs 19 are seated in the recess 21 above referred to,the hopper bottom will be reciprocated, with the result that the disks thereon, in traversing the outlet of the bottom, are caused to pass into the tubular extension thereof. As this tubular extension reciprocates above the flaring mouth of the tube 34, the disks will be discharged into the said tube. The continuous reciprocating motion of the tubular extension 18 of the hopper bottom causes a proper stacking of the disks therein. No matter in what position they arrive in the tubular extension, they will be brought, by the continuous reciprocating or vibrating motion, before they reach the flaring mouth of the tube 34, into substantially horizontal position and into exactly horizontal position as they pass into the stationary tube 34. The thickness and more or less curved shapes of the disks do not affect the proper operation of the device. The stationary pins 43 around the circular outlet 17 of the bottom form, together with the disk 42, a cage which has a two-fold purpose, to wit: First, it agitates the mass of sealing disks on the bottom of the hopper as the said bottom is being vibrated, and, second, it prevents a clogging of the outlet of the hopper, in that it permits only a limited num-" ber of disks to move toward the said outlet at a time.

A modification of the invention is illustrated in Figs. 9 and 10 of the drawings, differing slightly from the one above described. In this instance, the tubular extension 18 of the hopper bottom is directly seated in the eccentrical bore 50 in the bushing 27. To the flange 29 of this bushing is secured ahorizontally disposed cam 51, cooperating with lugs 52, that are carried by a frame 53, the latter beingfixedly attached to the hopper bottom. To prevent undue friction between the cam 51 and the lugs 52,

there are mounted upon the latter anti-friction rollers 5 The lugs 52 are disposed upon diametrically opposite portions of the hopper bottom and in the connecting line between the lugs 19. The diameter of the bore 50 in the bushing 27 is substantially larger than the outer diameter of the tubular extension 18 of the hopper bottom.

The operation of this device does not differ materially from that of the one above described. As the bushing 27 is being rotated, the cam 51 thereon, in cooperation with the lugs 52 on the hopper bottom, causes the latter to reciprocate, thereby causing the disks to pass into the tubular extension 18, which, in turn, will stack the same in the manner above described.

The invention herein described lies mainly in causing a rotary bushing to reciprocate the hopper bottom and its tubular outlet, its main object being to provide a structure wherein rotary motion is conveniently converted into reciprocating motion, without undue friction and without lost motion.

What I claim is 1. In a device of the character described, the combination with a hopper having a tubular outlet, of a rotary member through which said tubular outlet extends, and connectlng means between said rotary member and said tubular outlet for converting the rotary motion of said rotary member into rectilinear motion of said outlet.

2. In a. device of the character described, the combination with a hopper having a bottom provided with a tubular outlet, of a rotary member through which said tubular 3. In a device of the characterdescribed,

the combination with a hopper having a bottomv provided with a tubular outlet, said bottom being provided upon its underface with horizontally disposed guideways, of a rotary member having an eccentrical bore, a tube fitting said bore provided with a slide seated in said guideways, said tubular outlet extending through said tube and having an outer diameter substantially smaller than the inner diameter of said tube, and means allowing of a rectilinear motion only of said bottom and said outlet.

4. In a device of the character described, the combination with a hopper having a bottom provided with a tubular out-let, said bottom being provided upon its underface with horizontally disposed guideways, of a rotary member having an eccentrical bore, a tube fitting said bore provided with a slide seated in said guideways, said tubular outlet extending through said tube and having an outer diameter substantially smaller than the inner diameter of said tube, and means allowing of a rectilinear motion only of said bottom and outlet, said means being disposed in a line at right angles to the movement of said slide in said guideways.

Signed at New York, in the county of Kings, and State of New York, this 6th day of March, A. D. 1918.

EMILIO ALBERTI. 

